Middle Earth - LotR

[twofalls]

We do see one sorcerer "onscreen" in LotR: The Witch-King of Angmar. That said, "spellcasting" in LotR really looks like a bag of spell-like abilities for most characters in the setting; come to think of it, that goes for most characters in most fantasy novels as well. The learned wizard with a vast array of spells gleaned from ancient tomes and spells isn't actually as common an archetype in practice in most fantasy literature; rather, it seems a folktale artifact more than a common modern high fantasy trope.

In the book scene where Gandalf is attempting to open the eastern door to Moria, he speaks of his frustration about being unable to open the doors. He specifically mentions that he attempted every opening spell the he knows... this suggests a body of knowledge deeper than most any D&D Wizard. How many D&D spellcasters know more than one or two opening spells?

 

[Qlippoth]

In the book scene where Gandalf is attempting to open the eastern door to Moria, he speaks of his frustration about being unable to open the doors. He specifically mentions that he attempted every opening spell the he knows... this suggests a body of knowledge deeper than most any D&D Wizard. How many D&D spellcasters know more than one or two opening spells?

I'm not sure I'd afford a garden-variety PC the same body of wisdom allotted an (at least in Tolkien's Arda) archangel. Level adjustments notwithstanding, the lore accorded to one of five singular beings doesn't belong anywhere near a 1st level PC.

 

[Steverooo]

I'm not sure I'd afford a garden-variety PC the same body of wisdom allotted an (at least in Tolkien's Arda) archangel. Level adjustments notwithstanding, the lore accorded to one of five singular beings doesn't belong anywhere near a 1st level PC.

Gandalf wasn't a Vala, merely a Maia; more like one of the lower angels than the Archangel. Still, probably more knowledge than PCs, true enough... Wish I had my books handy, so I could look up how long he'd been in ME, by that point... Cirdan was in ME longer, perhaps, but I think he was older than Elrond... You can learn a lot of opening spells, in those milennia...

 

[Gentlegamer]

Gandalf wasn't a Vala, merely a Maia; more like one of the lower angels than the Archangel. Still, probably more knowledge than PCs, true enough... Wish I had my books handy, so I could look up how long he'd been in ME, by that point... Cirdan was in ME longer, perhaps, but I think he was older than Elrond... You can learn a lot of opening spells, in those milennia...

The first of the Istari arrived in Middle-earth in TA 1000, and Gandalf was the last to arrive (probably before the end of that century). The War of the Ring took place in TA 3016.